STATE LICENSE
ConditionalMaine Fuel Board — Office of Professional…
32 M.R.S. § 18102 requires a license from the Maine Fuel Board — the OPOR board that replaced the former Oil and Solid Fuel Board and Propane and Natural Gas Board — for anyone who installs or services oil, propane, natural gas, or solid fuel burning equipment, including pellet-fired central heating appliances. Classes include master, journeyman, and apprentice oil burner and solid fuel technicians, and propane and natural gas technicians holding authorities such as appliance connection and service up to 500,000 BTU per appliance. A master oil burner technician needs 4 years of licensed experience, at least 2 as a journeyman, and an exam (§ 18132); a propane and natural gas technician needs a board-approved or national propane association training program and an exam (§ 18135).
Maine has no state license for refrigeration, air-conditioning, or heat pump installation itself; technicians handling refrigerants need federal EPA Section 608 certification, and the electrical connections require a licensed electrician — except that a Fuel Board/Electricians' Examining Board MOU lets master and journeyman oil technicians wire mini-split heat pumps up to 36,000 BTU. OPOR lists Fuel Board licenses at $200 (master), $100 (journeyman), $40 (apprentice), and $100 (propane and natural gas technician) per two-year term, plus a $21 background check. Towns may not license fuel technicians (§ 18105).
The state sets the license floor; the county or city permit office controls filing, inspections, and local rules wherever the job site sits.
Fuel technician licensing is state-only: no municipality may require an oil, solid fuel, propane, or natural gas technician to be municipally licensed, and a town may not issue a permit for a fuel-burning installation unless the applicant complies with the Fuel Board law (32 M.R.S. § 18105). Building and mechanical permits otherwise follow the local MUBEC enforcement rules (10 M.R.S. § 9724), and towns may not ban EPA-acceptable refrigeration or air-conditioning equipment through their building codes (§ 9724(7)).
The local offices section below names the exact permit desk for every Maine county on file.
Each row names the issuing authority, cost, timeline, citation, and status behind the requirement — verified against the official source.
Published fees from the issuing authorities, as of October 2026. Local permit fees vary by project and jurisdiction — the basis is stated where a flat number does not exist.
The Oil and Solid Fuel Board and the Propane and Natural Gas Board were merged into the Maine Fuel Board (32 M.R.S. ch. 139, PL 2009, c. 344).
No Maine statute licenses heat pump or AC installers; refrigerant work needs EPA 608 and wiring needs a licensed electrician or an oil technician acting under the mini-split MOU.
Air-handling, sheet metal, and similar work on fuel-burning systems may be done by qualified mechanics without a Fuel Board license if supervised by a responsible master or propane technician (§ 18104(6)).
A practical sequence for a new HVAC contractor in Maine. Actual agency processing times are noted in the ledger above.
Each item names the issuing authority, cycle, and citation.
Statutory consequences with their citations — not estimates, not “commonly cited” guesses.
Making an oil, solid fuel, propane, or natural gas installation without a license, or employing an unlicensed person to do so; a strict-liability offense.
The Attorney General may sue to enjoin unlicensed practice and compel the return of compensation received.
Inside city limits, the city office listed here issues the permit; the county office serves unincorporated areas. Every office links to its official page.
| County · City | Permit office | Portal |
|---|---|---|
| Cumberland County Portland (consolidated gov.) | City of Portland Permitting and Inspections Department ↗ | Citizen Self Service (CSS) ↗ |
Every fact in this file was checked against these official sources on October 2026.
Pending verification: Fuel Board continuing education requirements for renewal (Board rules not read) · Whether any 2025–2026 legislation created a heat pump installer credential — none was found in Title 32 or on OPOR's board list, but a full bill search was not run · Propane and natural gas helper and solid fuel-only license fees (not captured) · Journeyman and apprentice oil technician pathways are from OPOR's page; 32 M.R.S. §§ 18133–18134 themselves were not read
General information, not legal advice. Always confirm requirements, deadlines, and forms with the issuing authority before filing or contracting.
Store licenses, permits, policies, and renewal dates in one place.